What is poetry? Is it stanzas written on a page? The flow of words in a certain rhythm? And why have humans done it for thousands of years? These questions are at the heart of a—relatively ...

“What is poetry? Why, sir,” roared Dr. Johnson to his ever-attentive Boswell, “we all know what light is, but it is not easy to tell what it is . . . It is much easier to say what it is not.” Poetry ...

April is National Poetry Month and as a poet and research psychologist, it’s my favorite time of year to discover and promote the joys and transformative powers of this art form. After all, poetry is ...

THERE is a very good reason why the relation of poetry to political revolution should interest our generation. Poetry, to most people, stands for the intensely personal life of the individual spirit.

In 1968, Margaret Ackerman of the University of Arizona authored a paper for The English Journal in which she included a summary of what poetry meant to most of her students: “sentimentality, ...

Songwriters are often praised with the backhanded comment that their lyrics are so great it means they are not mere songwriters, but poets. As if being a songwriter now, in the 21st century, is a ...